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Wednesday, October 25, 2006

I wanted to post the following story fully on the Blog because of how important it really is. When you come to the game Saturday - bring toys. It's a great cause and honors the memory of a great student-athlete - Michael Isenhour.

Tech Athletes Hold 6th-Annual Michael Isenhour Toy Drive October 28

Bring new, unwrapped toys to the GT-Miami football game

Oct. 23, 2006

ATLANTA - The Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board will hold the sixth-annual Michael Isenhour Toy Drive at the Georgia Tech-Miami football game October 28. New, unwrapped toys will be collected from fans as they enter the football stadium, or they may be dropped off at the Georgia Tech Athletic Association during business hours until Monday, October 30.

"Although the collection is early this year, we feel like the combination of a sell-out crowd and homecoming will give us the opportunity to collect the maximum amount of toys and help the largest number of people in our local community," said Rob Skinner, Director of the Homer Rice Center for Sports Performance and advisor to the Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board.

All collected toys will be donated to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Toys for Tots and other local Atlanta-area charities.

This year, the Georgia Tech student-athletes are joining forces with local Unites States Marine Corps to collect the toys at each gate at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The Marines and student-athletes will be in place to collect toys beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday.

"We are looking forward to working with the Marine Toys for Tots program, which will get the toys we collect directly back to the Atlanta community," added Skinner. "And we are so fortunate to have members of the United States Marine Corps on hand to assist in collecting those toys next Saturday."

In the past five years, Georgia Tech has collected more than 7,500 toys that have gone to local kids in time for the holiday. This year, the Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board has set high hopes of collecting 2,000 toys, and are asking fans to help achieve this lofty goal in 2006.

The Toy Drive was the brainchild of former Georgia Tech basketball player Michael Isenhour in an effort to help 9/11 families, and began in 2001 as Isenhour was battling leukemia. The Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board renamed it the Michael Isenhour Toy Drive to create an ongoing legacy to their fellow student-athlete, who lost his battle with cancer in 2002.